I'm Going Crazy
by misscakerella
Summary: Fletcher goes to the Big Apple. He's been treated like crap by everyone. From Grandma Dottie, the lady who was cursed of responsibility for him, to his cranky taxi driver. Then there's the girl in that weird mask... What happens from there?
1. Chapter 1

I was in New York.

NEW YORK.

I couldn't believe I did this. I should've been at Z-Tech listening to China play the guitar. I should've been playing video games with Angus, and being scolded by Lexi.

Olive... I just didn't know.

I probably should've stayed in New York. Olive was going to break up with me anyways.

New York was so... loud! Taxi cabs honked their horns every minute, and the people rushed off to work trying to get the attention of taxi drivers, or flooded into the subway.

My taxi driver, Paul, yelled "Get outta the way you rats!" as I tried to duplicate the New York scene onto my ratty sketchbook.

The tall buildings, the men in suits holding leather briefcases, the classy dressed women in the tallest high heels, the mustard yellow taxi cabs... It was so much to take in.

As I gazed at the scene, the taxi came to a halt at an ear-damaging screech.

"You're here now boy. Pay up." he said. I noticed his New York accent. It sounded so awesome. I wondered if I would develop one too...

THAT WOULD BE SO AWESOME.

I payed the man, and I got out my stuff from the taxi's trunk.

I said thanks to Paul as I faced the apartment building.

I noticed Grandma Dottie was there in front of the building with an impatient scowl upon her face.

"Hey Grandma!" I waved, trying to keep my stuff together. Grandma Dottie didn't bother to help me, nor greet me back.

"You're late kid. What the hell." she snapped as she took out a cheap lighter and pulled out a cigarette. She lighted it up at the end of the cigarette and stuck it into her mouth.

"Sorry Dottie. There was a lot of traffic." I said sheepishly.

"God... Your Gramps was less irritating..." she said as she headed inside.

I remembered years ago, Mom was enraged at Gramps for getting engaged to a woman he just met. He was the type of man who believed in those happy endings, like in those sappy Disney movies. I also remembered going to their wedding just months after Mom yelled at Gramps. I remember meeting Grandma Dottie. She was all sweet and kind. Now that Gramps has died of a weak heart, Dottie doesn't need to keep up her act anymore. I guess this was sort of another Cinderella story, but I don't want to get into that...

Grandma Dottie and I headed up to her apartment. Her high heels' bright color of pink blinded me as they clacked against the floor.

"Retcher, I have an extra guest room over there," she said, pointing to a door across the living room. "Drop your stuff there and unpack. There's a backpack inside there with all your supplies for school tomorrow."

I wanted to tell her my name was Fletcher, not Retcher. But I had a feeling she wasn't the type of person who liked being corrected.

"I'm going to school tomorrow!?" I exclaimed impulsively.

"Yes you are." she said glumly. "It's just around the corner."

"But-"

"There are no butts. Now unpack." she said as she shoved me into my room. As I fell onto the ground, I heard her slam the door shut, followed by a muffled sigh of relief and the sound of the TV went on.

I spent about an hour unpacking my things. I didn't bring much to New York. I left most of my stuff back at home, since most of it were gifts from my friends back at Z-Tech. All those things would just make me miss them more.

But I did accept things they gave me as a goodbye present. I can't remember what they gave me though... Hmmm...

After I unpack my things into the tiny closet, I sit on the bed with my sketchbook and a pencil in my hand.

I look at the sketches back from the past. Was this... New York... Will this be forever?

I see sketches of the A.N.T. Farm, and various sketches of China, back from when I used to have a crush on her. There were dozens of Chinas in there, but there were rare sketches of Olive.

Olive...

My thoughts were interrupted by a sound outside. It sounded like a snort, maybe a grate of some sort.

I slowly crept to the door. My hands slightly trembled as they reached for the silver doorknob. I peeked in the tiny crack I've made, and I saw that Grandma Dottie was asleep.

She was positioned awkwardly, her legs twisted up like pretzels. I never knew hair could get messy that quick, but apparently, it was. An adequate amount of drool was coming out of her mouth. The TV was still on.

As she layed on the grungy brown couch, I did something I thought I would never do.

I crept outside the tiny room into the living room. I did not know what I was doing, but apparently, I was gonna do it, whether I was gonna get in trouble or not.

I watched as my hand trembled over the bright red purse just a few feet away from Grandma Dottie's arm.

My hand carefully went through the purse. The sound of ransacking was muffled, but I was afraid that Dottie would just... wake up. Then kill me.

My hand pulled up to reveal shiny keys. I knew one of them would be a key to the apartment. I had a feeling that I wanted to go somewhere...

Before I left, I grabbed my sketchbook along with a pencil, and headed off.

**A/N: Yeah guys... I edited this chiz... Anyways, I want at least FOUR REVIEWS. You know... But if I don't get those reviews, then... Eh. I'm already typing up Chapter 2, so I wouldn't want my heard work go to waste.**

**So... Leave a review?**


	2. Chapter 2

I spent twenty minutes looking for Central Park. Once I found it, I realized that Olive was right.

I really was stupid. Central Park was so huge! Wow... It was a lot to take in on paper... I couldn't believe it!

Wow.

I saw hotdog carts peppering the park, and kids were laughing and flying colorful kites. Couples were having picnics on red and white checkered blankets, and a few pigeons swarmed around a frail old lady wearing articles of yellow clothing, sitting on a bench and caking the ground with stale bread crumbs.

But what really got my attention were these kids that just... stood out.

I saw this little girl talking to a redhead about in her twenties. The little girl had dark skin, and curly hair tied with pink ribbons. She looked like the sassy type, as she demanded something from the young redhead she was talking to.

There was also this boy about my age who was dancing to the sound of a boombox. He had freckles, and a crowd of girls just cheering for him as he moonwalked across the concrete floor. The volume of the girls' cheering was so loud that even when I covered my ears, their voices still sounded like they were at maximum volume on the TV.

There was also this blonde girl, maybe my age. She didn't do much. She looked like the average teenage girl. She was texting on her phone and giggling, probably about a boy. She wore designer clothes, much more fancier than the clothes Lexi Reed wore back at Webster. She must be a Daddy's girl. She was tall, I could tell even though she was sitting down on a bench. All she did was sit on the bench texting right next to a chubby old guy in a suit eating a hotdog from one of the vendors nearby. His head sined bright like a diamond...

Then there was this Indian kid feeding bugs to a monstrosity of a lizard. The boy looked scrawny and fragile. He was the epitome of the boy racists thought of when they thought of an Indian boy.

I just sat at a nearby bench, closed my eyes, and took a deep breathe of fresh air.

I was tired. My arms felt numb and my eyes were heavy like bricks. My mind kept telling me I needed to go back to the apartment, but-

zzz...

zzz...

zzz...

I woke up to a screeching scream. I noticed that my sketchbook fell on the floor earlier, but that instantly left my mind when I saw the scene in front of me.

The boy with freckles had stopped dancing. The sound of his boombox had been replaced by imaginary intense horror music in the air. I had a feeling I wasn't supposed to be there, but I didn't get up. I just watched.

There was a girl looking down upon the freckled boy. There was a video camera in her left hand, and a mask of that one character from Star Wars over her head. Long blond hair peeked out from under her mask.

Hmmm... Darth Vader?

I couldn't see her face, but I could tell that under her mask, there was a maniac grin upon her lips.

"Luke, I am your father!" she joked.

The boy didn't crack a smile. He just crossed his arms over his chest like a shield.

"Get away from me!" he screamed like a girl.

"But why?" she giggled.

I heard her say her sentence in a peculiar tone. It was the same tone I used when Olive broke up with me. I tried to sound like I was okay, but my voice suddenly became hoarse.

"You're creepy! Get away!" the boy exclaimed, his eyes shut tight. I could tell he was expecting her to do something to him. Something... crazy. But instead, she shut her video camera and walked away.

My head was still fuzzy from waking up, but I think the boy headed home, along with the other people I've mentioned.

There may have been other people at the park, but all I saw was that girl with the mask.

She was then sitting on a bench. I could tell that through her mask, she was watching the video she took on her video camera. I couldn't tell whether she was sad or happy. All I saw was that mask.

_Should I talk to her? _I thought. _What if she attacks me like that boy Luke? _

But she did look lonely...

GAHH.

Next thing I knew, I was gripping my sketchbook tight as I headed over to her.

I slowly lowered myself onto the bench she was sitting at.

She suddenly looked at me through that mask. Was she glaring at me?

"Go away."

I didn't know what to say. My brain told me she was trouble, but a part of me said something else.

"Why?"

"I know you saw me attack that guy. I'm a psycho. Go away." she said monotonously, like a robot.

"Why are you wearing a mask?" I asked impulsively.

"Why are you here?" she snapped.

She was looking at me now. My breathe hitched. I didn't know how this was going to end.

"You look like you could use a friend."

She looked at me like I've grown an extra head.

I KNOW. I KNOW. It sounded like something from a cheesy friendship movie about teamwork and courage, or whatever those Gisnep people think children like.

_GAHHH... I am so stupid._

"Seriously? That's the best you can do?"

I mentally facepalmed myself.

"Look, I just moved here and everybody's been treating me like crap. I was just hoping I would make a friend today." I explained sheepishly.

"This is New York kid," she sighed and shut her video camera once again. "Get used to it."

**A/N: So... Uhh... Leave a review?**

**By the way, if you thought "What the hell" when you saw "Gisnep" I don't blame you. When I was little, I always thought the Disney with the fancy spelling looked a lot like Gisnep, so... yeah...**


	3. Chapter 3

After the girl left, I sighed and headed back to the apartment, hoping Dottie wasn't awake yet.

I faced the door and slowly turned the rusty doorknob. My breath hitched as I pushed the door open, slight creaking erupting.

And... She was still deep in her slumber, her position still the same.

It was just like I left her. Her legs were still twisted, and the TV was still on. She now had a monstrous drool stain salivating onto her chest from her red lips. Her blonde hair was much more messier than last time, if it was possible.

I slowly crept up to my bedroom door desperately trying not to make the floorboards creak. The floor unfortunately creaked a little, but I was in the clear.

When I finally made it into my tiny room, I slowly closed the door and let out a sigh of relief as I trust-fallen onto the bed.

And then I remembered...

_Oh crap. The keys._

DING DONG!

The sound of the doorbell interrupted my thoughts, but I figured I could just sneak in the keys while Dottie answered the door.

"Retcher!" I heard Dottie yell in a groggy voice awake from her slumber. "Get the door!" she yelled from the living room.

I guess my plan wasn't gonna be executed.

I got up from my bed and headed outside to the living room, passing Dottie all the way to the front door. I opened the door to reveal...

Oh.

"Hi. I'm... Oh."

It was that girl from the park. She still had that Darth Vader mask on. Of course. "Still have your mask on?" I smirked, trying to make the awkwardness in the air dissolve. Even from behind that mask, I could tell she was rolling her eyes at me as she crossed her arms in an irritated fashion.

"It's you. Oh brother..." she mumbled. She barged in, marching right in front of the TV Dottie was watching on.

"Hey! I was watching a cooking show!" Dottie complained.

"It's not like you're going to actually cook." the girl snapped.

"Good point there..." Dottie conceded as she picked up the remote by her side and turned it off with her perfectly manicured hand. "So... What do you want this time? Money?" Dottie asked, clearly annoyed by the girl's presence.

"_That's _your grandson?" the girl asked Dottie as she pointed her index finger at me.

"Well, step-grandson. Why do you ask?"

"You said he was someone I could make friends with."

"All I said that he was your age," Dottie grinned. "Either way, you can make friends with him. You both are freaks. What's so bad about him?"

I could just tell Dottie was thinking of millions of reasons per minute.

The girl did nothing. All she did was try to think of reasons, but nothing came out of her mouth.

"He's annoying." the girl finally answered.

"How do you know that?" Dottie cocked one eyebrow upward in curiosity, probably wondering if the girl and I ever met.

I could tell the girl somehow knew I snuck out by the looks she gave me. She didn't say anything about the park. All she did was remain silent.

"That's what I thought." Dottie smirked, pulling out another cigarette.

"I'll tell you what doll," Dottie started, digging through her purse. "Here's some money. Take him out to the mall or whatever. I can't stand him being here and I need him gone. I've got company coming over. You can have him back here by ten." Dottie said the. handed the girl a wad of crumpled twenties. After that, she checked her purse for another item. "Retcher, here's the..." she trailed off, not finding what she was looking for. "Keys."

"It's Fletcher." I said, annoyed of her misuse of my name. "And thanks. We'll be back by ten." I smirked as I flashed the stolen keys at Dottie as the girl pulled me out the door back into the city.

**A/N: Yeah... I suck at updating my stories. I always procrastinate and such. Ugh.**

**Anyways, how's your summer going? I've got drama bombs thrown at me every five minutes. *sigh***

**Leave a review and tell me what you want to happen next.**


	4. Chapter 4

When the girl and I got out of the apartment, she let go of me and shoved her hands into the pocket of the large black sweater she was wearing.

"Where are we going?" I asked. She turned to face me, probably making a face at me. "And who are you?"

She sighed, but I couldn't tell her facial expressions through that mask. "The name's Constance, but people call me Connie. No need for you to introduce yourself to me. Dottie already got that covered."

We headed towards the elevator, no one else in sight. Everyone else was probably at work or in their apartments, safe and secure. It was a rather awkward journey with her, me having to keep the conversation going.

"You said you wanted to be friends with me?" I asked after a few moments of hesitation.

"I did, but your first impression of me is probably the same as everybody else's," she replied casually. "Creepy. Very creepy."

"Who said I thought that?" I replied and she didn't say anything after that. "If you still want to be my friend, I think that would be really cool."

There was another moment of silence as we exited the elevator and walked out onto the sidewalk, our Converse shoes brushing the concrete with each step.

"That would be cool," she said, her words slightly muffled by her mask. She pulled out the wad of cash Grandma Dottie gave her. "Where do you want to eat?"

"I don't care."

"Pizza it is then."

After a few more minutes of walking, Connie and I arrived at a place called Crusty's. No one is here except for a man in the corner playing a ukulele… Ew.

Connie must've noticed the sour look on my face. "I know the name of this place sounds kind of gross, but you'll love their pepperoni pizza."

I sat at a table for two as she went up to the counter and ordered. Thankfully, there was no line so she didn't have to wait so long. When she was done ordering, she sat down in the chair across mine.

"So… Is this a date?" I suddenly blurted, instantly regretting it right afterwards.

I couldn't tell if she was blushing or whatnot behind that mask. She just replied in a monotonous tone, "No. Of course not. I don't even know you."

"Then I guess we should get to know each other," I said, trying to clear up the air a little bit.

"Well-"

"Order 2 ready!"

She sighed and got up to pick up the box of cheesy goodness. When she got back to the table, she opened it up and I dug right in forgetting everything else.

"Haha. You have some sauce on your cheek." she laughed. I wiped at it with a napkin and she started the conversation again.

"So… When are you going to school?"

"Monday. Maybe Tuesday, if I can fake an illness."

"That sounds cool. You know where you're going to school?"

"Some place named Walden." I replied.

"I go to Walden! Maybe I'll see you there!" she bursted and stood up, which took me by surprise. After realizing that she made a scene, she sat back down. "Sorry. I get weird sometimes."

"It's fine." I say, and take another bite of pizza. I notice that when Connie goes to take a bite of pizza, she has to lift up the bottom part of her mask.

"Why don't you just take off your mask?"

"Because I like my mask." she says sternly.

_Oh._

To avoid having the conversation become even more tense, I abruptly change the subject. "How do you know my Grandma Dottie?"

"She's been my neighbor ever since I could remember. She's mean, but there's something about her that makes me stick. It's weird." she said, then took another bite of pizza. "Dottie told me that she had a grandson moving in with her about my age, but why are you here?"

I shrugged. "Well, I'm an artist. I had an opportunity given to me, so I took it."

"Oh, you do art. You paint or what?"

"I do everything, really. I sculpt, paint, sketch, you name it."

"Do you have a sketchbook?" she asked, an interested tone in her voice.

"I do, but I forgot it back at the apartment."

She casually checks her watch. "Oh my god, I have to get you back to Dottie!"

She then grabs the last remaining slice of piece of pizza, shoves it into her mouth, and then runs out. Of course, I run out as well because I don't want to get lost.

"You're- You're too fast! I'm-I'm not good at- ugh- running!"

"I don't care!" she yells, and I'm forced to follow her until we arrive at my place.

After endless running, we finally arrive back to my apartment door just in time. Connie rings the doorbell and Grandma Dottie opens the door.

"Punctual, as always Connie."

Connie bends over, hands on her thighs. Her pants are heavy and irregular. However, I end up collapsing on my knees onto the floor.

"No… No problem Dottie."

Grandma Dottie looks at me, a frown upon her face. "Damn Fletcher, you look like shit."

"Right back at you", I retort, kind of pissed off.

When Connie regains her composure, she says goodbye to me and Grandma Dottie. After that, she leaves to her apartment. She takes the elevator at the end of the hall, so she's probably on another floor. When Connie's out of sight, Grandma Dottie drags me back inside the apartment,slamming the door behind the both of us.

"Where were you two?" she asked, as if she was my mother.

"Why are you so mad? We came back right on time."

"Explain why you two were breathing so heavily when I opened the goddamn door."

"We were running so we wouldn't be late!"

She sighs, then walks over to the balcony, which only has two chairs and a pot of what's left of what I think is a succulent plant. She sits on one of the metal chairs and lights another cigarette. "What did you two do out there?"

"Go to some pizza place and talk."

"About what?"

"Not much. I learned that I'm gonna be going to school with her on Monday."

The smell of the smoke irritates me, so I tell Grandma Dottie that I have to finish unpacking the rest of my stuff.

"Whatever kid."

I head into my room and as I lay there under the covers, I suddenly can't wait for school on Monday.

Weird.

**A/N: I'm back. Oh, and leave a review if you want another update. I want at least two before the next chapter.**


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